Fiery Featherweight

Whooo it is done!


This one felt like it went on and on forever, with all those stitches in such fine yarn. At times I was ready to tuck it in a corner and let it collect dust for a while, but NaKniSweMoDo spurred me on -- I was a month behind my self-set goal and this cardigan was the closest to completion. I'm glad I persevered because it is sooo very lovely, soft, airy and doesn't scream 'hey I made this'.


Pattern: Hannah Fettig's Featherweight
Yarn: Malabrigo Lace, just a smidge over 2 skeins
Mods? Not many - I knit the body and the sleeves a tad longer than the pattern calls for. And instead of the stocking stitch collar that has a tendancy to roll, I plumped for a matching K1P1 rib border... which at first looked like it was going to pull up the edges of the cardigan, but after a little blocking, lies perfectly flat.


So this is NaKniSweMoDo09 for August. Better get busy if I'm going to catch up and whip something out for September...
(Oh yes, and that's a sneak peak at my baby bump - 16 weeks along!)

Slipper Season

It's getting a little cooler here and there are flashes of autumnal colours in the neighbourhood trees. That's right, it's officially the start of slipper season!

Each year I produce a batch of felted clogs for dear family members to keep their toes toasty. They've become a much sought after item, and by now I'm thinking I should be able to crank them out in my sleep.


First up this year were my step son's slippers. He moved from sunny warm Florida to come live with us and his proto-man toes aren't used to Colorado's chillier climes. I won't share the pics - boring, boring grey man slippers.

And then there's my Mum's. Mum can easily go through 2 sets in one wintry season, and since I believe it's also chillier back home already I needed to get hers out in the mail pronto. Women's slippers are far cuter than the boring man version - I can give them 'flair'! :o))) I'm really fond of the colours in these and the ribbon fringe cuff.


I tried to get Buster to model them, but as you can see he's less than impressed about the whole modelling gig. Which, to be honest, just cracks me up even more. Just wait 'til I have my wee one to do some modelling for me as well... I can hear it now, 'Awww Mum, do I have to?'

So that's 2 pairs down, and I think 6 to go...

BOB

I'm about to join the masses of knit bloggers who are blessed with kiddos. I couldn't be happier :)

That's right, I have a Baby On Board - BOB to friends and family.
(The name originated with my 6 yr old nephew when I was asking for potential baby names - his first suggestion was Bob, followed by Thomas, and then Spiderman - which apparently would be very cool!) Bob kind of stuck around here and evolved to stand for Baby On Board. I think it's cute so it became a keeper.

Although BOB isn't set to make his/her debut appearance until March 7th, he/she is already the recipient of some super lovely gifties from Grandma and Grandpa. Super lovely and especially awesome because they are handmade:


BOB's first knitted item of clothing - a super duper jumpsuit that will be perfect for a cold, snowy Colorado March, April and May.




And BOB's first toy - what could be more perfect for the child of a crazy dog lady, than a toy puppy. And one that's personalized, no less. Love this A LOT!


Yep, BOB's going to be one lucky ducky surrounded and clothed in handmade goodies, and the recipient of much love, kisses and cuddles :)

Thank you Mum, I was really touched by the parcel (and it probably won't surprise you that I welled up when opening this ;)
Love you both xoxo

Precious Pinwheel

A dear knitty friend is due to have a bouncing baby boy very soon... I'd learnt about this some time ago and started working on a small baby blanket for her new bundle of joy.

Pattern: Pinwheel Baby Blanket from the Knitalong book
Yarn: Rowan All Season Cotton - a mix of blue/cream for the center and beige/cream for the seed stitch border
Modifications: I made the seed stitch border a bit wider than the pattern calls for, but that's it.

This is a great simple knit. Movie knitting, if you like :) It's knit in the round and only has a few ends to weave in. Perfect portable project. And I do like the All Seasons cotton it wears really well after being thrown in the machine and dryer... ease of care for a new Mom.

Halloween papercrafting

The other week I was hanging out and stamping with my friend Cheryl. She taught me to make some cute Halloween goodies:


There's the card of course, but also the 2 candy carriers. One is a little gift bag that's made from scratch, the other is a decorated recycled/cleaned Frappuccino bottle that's filled with M&Ms. Cute heh? I love these little giveaway/party favour ideas.

As it turns out, for my monthly stamp club swap, the ladies chose a 3d swap. So I put my new candy-carrier-making skills into action and replicated the little gift bag that Cheryl had taught me how to make with some fun black stripe/red skully paper. I filled them with some Hershey's kisses so the stamping ladies can use as Halloween giveaways if they choose.


These are adorable, but they did take me all night to make! Well worth the effort as a one-off, but I don't think I'll be mass producing for the kids in the neighbourhood come Oct 31st!